Specimen holder



April 5, 1949. A. l. NEWMAN 2,466,610

SPECIMEN HOLDER Filed Nov. 23, 1945 2 /4 INVENTOR.

mrramsy- Patented Apr. 5, 1949 SPECIMEN HOLDER Alexander I. Newman, River Forest, Ill., assignor to Precision Scientific Co., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application November 23, 1945, Serial No. 630,417

4 Claims.

This invention relates to holders for use in the preparation of specimens for macro and micro examination.

Among other objects the invention aims to provide a simple and improved device for simultaneously holdin a plurality of specimens during preparation of the specimens for examination.

Another object is to provide a simple and improved means for simultaneously clamping or releasing the specimens in the holder.

A further object is to provide simple means for locating the specimens in the holder at a uniform height for grinding and other treatment.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description of one illustrative device embodying the invention and shown in the accompanying drawing.

In said drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a holder with specimens clamped therein for grinding and other treatment;

Fig. 2 is a plan section through the holder taken on the plane 2-2 of Fig.

Fig. 3 is an elevation and partial section of the holder and assembly jig, taken on the broken plane 33 of Fig. 2.

The macro and micro examination of specimens in metallurgy and elsewhere requires that a surface of the specimen be ground and polished with a minimum disturbance of its structure. For that purpose it is generally the practice to mount or mold the specimen with thermosetting plastic material such as Bakelite into carriers in the form of cylindrical plugs by which the specimen is firmly held during its preparation. It should be understood that other types of specimen plugs are also employed. When only a small number of specimens is required at a given time it is generally the practice to hold the plugs by hand against the grinding and polishing disks. The illustrative device provides a simple and efiicient holder for simultaneous manual preparation of a plurality, in this case, three specimens.

As here shown the specimens l are mounted as aforesaid in cylindrical plugs II. The holder comprises a flat disk-like body l2 having plug receiving recesses l3 of a size to receive the plugs. In this case the recesses are in the form of bores extending through the disk. The thickness of the illustrative disk is less than the depth of the specimen plugs to permit the ends of the plug to project, as at M and Ma above and below the surface of the disk, the specimen being embedded in the lower end of the plug. The bores l3 are so located in the disk as to expose a portion of 2 the sides of the plug, as at I5, at the edge of the disk.

For convenience the term specimen will be employed in a broad sense to include articles held in the holder which may not technically be called specimens.

The plugs are held in the disk by a tensioned element in the form of an encirculing flexible band 18, which applies radial pressure simultaneously to the several plugs to hold them firmly to the holder.

In the present case the disk is circumferentially grooved as at l9 to provide a seat for the band. The bores l3 are advantageously located inside the rims 2i bordering the groove, thus exposing the plugs l I only in the groove opposite the band. The periphery of the rims is thus unbroken.

The band is tensioned in this case by expanding, in effect, the circumference of the groove in which the band lies. The expanding means is shown in the form of a screw 22 threaded into the body of the disk and having a portion 23 bearing against the inner face of the band. When the screw is rotated in a direction to move it outwardly the portion 23 bears against the band and in effect increases the circumference of the groove, thereby tensioning the band to press tightly against the exposed surfaces of the plugs. The screw is preferably located intermediate a pair of plugs so as not to interfere with full contact of the band with the plugs. In this case the screw passes through the band (which is perforated for that purpose) and carries a head 25 by means of which it may be rotated. The portion 23 is in the form of a collar or shoulder bearing against the band. The screw passing as it does through the band prevents its elongation and thereby avoids the necessity of using an integral circular ring as a band. In this case a flexible metallic strip perforated at 24 and 26 adjacent each end to receive the screw, is employed. The opening 24 in the overlying end of the band is preferably large enough to be passed over the head 25 of the screw when the band is slack, that is when there are no specimens in the holder. When the band is tensioned the leading edge of the hole 24 lies under the head, thereby holding the band in place.

To release the specimens the screw is rotated to move it inwardly thereby relaxing the band and its pressure against the plugs.

A jig 21 (Fig. 3) is advantageously employed to aid in assembling the plugs in the holder with their lower faces 28, at the same level even though the plugs are of difierent length or depth. As

faces of all or the'rplugs'are brought into identical level. After the band has been tensioned to grip the plugs, the holder is removed from the jig.

The holder is then transferred to the grinding and polishing disks by which the surface-of the specimen is prepared. The holder is of a size which is convenient for holdingthe' specimens,

manually against the abrasive and polishing disks. Thus a plurality of specimens may be simultaneously prepared with no-greaterexpenditure of time or efl'ort than would be required for-"a.

single specimen. The plurality of specimens in a single holder avoids the danger of tilting the specimen relative to the abrasive disks which generally cannot be avoided when a single plug is manually held.

Obviously the invention is not limited to the details of the illustrative device since these may be variously modified. Moreover, it is not indispensable that all features of the invention be used conjointly sincevarious features may be used to advantage in different combinations and sub-combinations.

I claim as my invention:

1. In aspecimen. holder, the combination of a fiat disk shaped body having therein aseries of cylindrical recesses arranged on. axes parallel to axis of said disk,.said recesses being located to intersect with the periphery of said disk and thus open laterally thereon, a flexible clamping band encirclingv said disk and having its ends overlapping, a screw passing through the overlapped portions of the band and threaded into said disk, said screw having a portion bearing against the inner face of said band to tension the latter when the screw is moved outwardly thereby to press against the exposed surfaces of specimens, and means for tensing said band cir- 'cumierentiall'y to clamp specimensin the respective recesses.

2. The combination of a specimen holder comprising a body forsupporting a plurality of specimen carriers for axial adjustment, a plate having a plurality of bosses thereon engageable by the body to position the same in spaced relation to the plate, said plate providing locating surfaces between said bosses for gauging the axial adjustment of the carriers, and means for clamping said carriers in their adjusted positions in the body.

3. The combination of a specimen holder comprising a relatively thin flat body having a plurality of recesses therein respectively adapted to receive specimen carriers for axial adjustment therein, a plate having means engageable by one face of the body to position it in spaced relation to the plate, said plate providing locating surfaces for engagement by the respective carriers in the axial adjustment thereof in the body, and means for clamping said carriers in their adjusted positions in the body.

4. 'A device for holding a plurality of cylindrical carriers mounting metallurgical specimens for simultaneous grinding of the same comprising, in combination, a flat disk shaped body having a plurality of bores passing therethrough on axes parallel to axis of said disk, and spaced equidistant from the center thereof, said bores being of a diameter just sufllcient to accommodate said carriers, each of said bores intersecting the adjacent edge of said body to provide an opening of a width less than one half the perimeter of saidbores, said disk shaped body having rounded peripheral flanges for manual gripping and defining a groove therebetween, and a manually releasable flexible clamping band encircling said groove for maintaining said specimen carriers rigidly clamped in said bores. even-under conditions of uneven manual pressure tending to displacethem.

ALEXANDER I. NEWMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 799,193 Sanford Sept. 12, 1905 937,379 Miller Oct. 19, 1909 1,134,944 Boyle Apr. 6, 1915 1,763,647 Danner June 17, 1930 1,892,363 Raule Dec. 27, 1932 2,062,106 Reinhardt Nov. 24, 1936 2,352,551 Kende et al June 27, 1944 

